Students face changes in the number of classes offered, hours of student services and other reductions due to recent budget cuts.
University President Stephen Hulbert addressed faculty and staff on the issue over the summer through a series of emails.
Hulbert revealed in a July 1 email that cuts to the University in June 2012 totaled $5.3 million. The cuts were a result of the state reducing money invested into the University. $4.6 million of the cut came from a lack of state funding, insurance premiums and retirement costs, while the other $737,000 of the cut came from the lack of tuition coming into the University.
The cuts are causing layoffs and the dissolving of vacant faculty and staff positions further resulting in the reduction of class sections. Student services, such as the Office of Career Services and the Office of Disability Services, have had to cut positions and change hours of operation. The Counseling Center has also taken a reduction in staff.
“Employee layoffs began Aug. 1, resulting in 28 layoffs and the elimination of 65 vacant positions,” Hulbert said in the July 1 email.                      
In an Aug. 15 email, Hulbert detailed that of the employees laid off, two were faculty members and 26 were various employees and staff members ranging from advisors in University College to administrative assistants.
“This is an agonizing process, leaving good people jobless and introducing increased burdens to those left behind,” Hulbert said in a July 31 email.
The unfilled positions were vacant previous to the budget cut, and will continue to be unfilled or an adjunct will be hired to take on some of the workload.
“Employees are also taking on jobs that they are not designated to do to assist the University in this hard time,” Vice President of Student Affairs Eugene Dial said. “With the reduction in staff, students may see slower responses from departments because of the cut.”
Vice President of Academic Affairs Laynie Barrilleaux said layoffs and vacancies are causing class sizes to increase and class offerings to decrease.
“The University is trying their hardest to make sure students are serviced and sheltered from the effects as much as possible,” Barrilleaux said. “Despite the budget cuts, all programs are still in tact, but class offerings might not be as convenient to students as before.”
Dial said the University is making changes throughout the campus to assist with the burden of the cuts.
To cut down on cost, the University has started to switch over from printing refund checks to direct deposit. For student employees, time sheets have moved online. Also, 99 percent of admissions applications are now online. This saves the University from having to pay someone to receive and process the application.
“We are constantly looking for new ways to save money and new initiatives that can help the University grow in different ways,” Barrilleaux said.
One of the initiatives to help the University is proposing full degrees online.
“This will help with students that want to obtain a degree, but do not have the means of attending a campus,” Barrilleaux said.
Another possibility for the coming semesters is a four-day week. This will mean that some classes will become hybrid classes. If a student has class on a Monday then that class on Wednesday will be online. This will free up “primetime real-estate” for class sections.
The recent budget cuts has evoked a personal response.
“Put simply, the lack of state support for higher education in Louisiana is a tragedy and an incredible mistake by the Louisiana State government,” Hulbert said in a July 31 email.
“If we do not educate the young population at some point, they will leave the state to find economic opportunities elsewhere,” Dial said.
Hours of student services have changed, but the services are still available. The Office of Career Services is now available Sept. 1 through June 30. Although they are not available until then, the website, www.collegecentral.com/Nicholls, can assist students, alumni and employers.
The Office of Disabilities have changed the office hours to 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and the testing hours to 8 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Dial said. With the loss of staff in the Counseling Center, students can still see a counselor, but it may take longer than usual.